Brazilian Musician Gilberto Gil Cancels Israeli Concert Date

Brazilian singer and songwriter Gilberto Gil has cancelled a performance that was scheduled in Israel this summer, citing âgeneral sentiment of apprehension.â

The legendary Grammy and Latin Grammy Award winner, once Brazilâs Culture Minister and now considered one of Latin Americaâs most prominent and influential musicians, was supposed to perform in the city of Tel Aviv on July 4, but cancelled the performance, in what seems to be a response to Israelâs crimes against the Palestinian people, over the past few weeks.

According to WAFA, Gil sent a letter to the concertâs producers addressing the cancellation, and said: âThe general sentiment of all is one of apprehension as Israel is going through this sensitive moment.â

Although he didnât mention Gaza or Palestinians, the âsensitive momentâ is thought, most likely, to be a reference to the recent Israeli army massacre in the Gaza Strip, which left 63 Palestinians dead, including children, during a protest on May 14.

Hind Awwad, from the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI), also a member of the Palestinian BDS National Committee, commented: âWe warmly welcome Gilberto Gilâs cancellation of his concert in Tel Aviv, the center of Israelâs regime of occupation and apartheid. We thank Gilâs fans in Brazil and across Latin America whose outrage over Israelâs latest massacre in Gaza and support for Palestinian human rights seem to have played a decisive role in his decision.â

She added: âBy cancelling this show, Gil is in the good company of many world-renowned artists who have refused to art-wash Israelâs regime of oppression, including Lorde, Lauryn Hill, Elvis Costello, Brian Eno, the late Gil Scott-Heron, Faithless, Roger Waters, among many others.

âWe sincerely hope that Gil will never perform in Israel until Palestinians enjoy freedom, justice, and equality.â

Celebrities, elected officials and influencers turned to social media to express their outrage at Israelâs killing of Palestinians marching for their freedom and protesting US President Donald Trump’s move of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.